Being in an relationship is exciting, isn’t it?  There is so much to enjoy about being with that special person in your life. However, there might be times (more for some than others) where you are apart – it could be just a week or even several months. It’s not something we like to think about, nor is it very enjoyable.

But there are things that you can do during the time to help keep your relationship exciting and help the time pass easier. If perhaps, you’re thinking you won’t be apart from your significant other for long periods of time (you never know though), these things can still be done between the two of you.

The Shared Folder "Love Note"

Love notes are always nice to give and get. This concept I just recently discovered and it’s fun to do whether you are just across the room from each other on your laptops or hundreds of miles apart. I personally use Dropbox for this as I love the ease of making a shared folder and instant notifications that a change has been made, but it can be done with Google Drive, SugarSync or any other cloud storage and sync service.

The idea behind this is simple – create a simple text document in the folder shared between the two of you. You can name it something generic like "Love Notes" or something that is only between the two of you. Then you just update it with "sweet little nothings".

Like I said earlier, Dropbox will notify you when it is updated – which I like a lot. This is my favorite one I think of all. And the reason being is that you have one place that your compliments are. Sure you can still send them a text, email, Facebook message or leave a voicemail, but this is something shared between only the two of you and that’s what makes it special.

The Video Chat Love Note

This one is kind of different. Some may think it's weird, but some might also like it – I leave that to you to decide. In college I was in a long distance relationship, so we would Skype every night. Because it was often late we grew into the habit of just falling asleep on webcam (which might be weird for a lot of people, but it wasn't for us). On occasion one of us would fall asleep when the other was wide awake and so they would write a note and prop it up in front of the webcam so when the other would wake up, they'd be greeted with a note.

This also could be done if you were video chatting and one had to leave for work, but left the webcam on. Then the other could make a note  for the other to see when they got back.

Of course, with this one bandwidth limits are certainly a factor, so that's something to consider.

Bombard All Forms Of Communication At Once

What? That sounds annoying! Well… it could be, especially if it was just anyone. But the idea here is that whenever your significant other checks these various places throughout the day, they’ll find a pleasant note from their favorite person in each one. These can be an email, Facebook Private Message, Twitter Direct Message, Text or even a voicemail if you know they won’t answer. Notice I didn’t include anything that is public – we’ll get to that in a bit.

Still unsure how this might work? Think of it like if you were running a bunch of errands one day and everywhere you went you saw a sign from “him” or “her” with a special note. Of course, that would be even better, but it’s slightly impractical. This is much more attainable to do!

Make A To-Do List Together

“We should do that sometime!” Does that sound familiar? I think we’ve all said that at one point or another. But how often do we actually follow through?

This is the solution to that. Create a list of things want to do. The idea is that both of you can access it from anywhere so have it synced to the cloud. The one I use is in Google Drive, but if you want to stay with using Dropbox (or whatever service you both use) a simple text file would do.

You could even go a step beyond and bold the ones which you could do easily or even organize it by time frame – but you don’t want to make it too technical as sometimes it kills the fun and inspiration. But this is between you and your significant other, so make it what you both want it to be.

Publicize Your Love (But Only Occasionally)

Previously we talked about using various social networks (and other forms of communication) to privately tell that special person how much you care for them. Well, now it’s time to take it in a different direction – publicly.

A couple disclaimers:

• Don’t overdo this.
• Don’t do it if they don’t like this sort of thing.

Both of these are very important. First, you definitely don’t want to do this every day or even every week – just once in a while. It should be a surprise to her or him, not an annoyance (and the same with your contacts).

Second, you know them better than anyone else, so if they’re not big on this kind of thing, do something different – maybe don’t go public, but find something else that will mean more to them.

Remember The Important Days With Google Calendar

Now, you should already know these days by heart, but having a reminder is nice. Plus, with Google Calendar you can set up custom reminders. Facebook Calendar can also be useful for remembering very important dates, such as their birthday and your anniversary. But usually it’s too late to do anything real special in time – so use a calendar that reminds you far ahead of time.

I must emphasize, though, do not rely on this. The excuse "my Google Calendar didn’t remind me! I don’t know why! I’m sorry!” doesn’t sound very good.

Use Evernote To Save & Look Back On Memories You Cherish

Often, special memories don’t necessarily seem that significant at the time they’re happening, but when looking back they mean so much. However, as more and more experiences happen, it can be easy to forget some of the little things. By writing them down immediately after they happen (don’t do it during – just enjoy the moment) you will have something to look back on and appreciate those little things a lot more.

These don’t have to be only the big things you did together, such as maybe what is in your to-do list (although I encourage you to add simple things to that too), these can be anything that you want to remember. When in doubt, add it.

In the title I say Evernote, but it can be anything that helps you save notes, such as Google Drive, Springpad, or another text document in your Dropbox. I, personally, like Evernote to help me remember everything.

A modification of this would be to share this note with your significant other and you can both add your favorite memories to it.

Create A Mutual Spotify Playlist Together

There are songs that just make us think of the other person in a special way, so why not add all of those and share them with each other? Spotify seems to be the logical choice for this, but if there’s another service that you both – key word there – use and it works for you, go ahead and use that instead.

Technology Isn’t Always The Answer: When NOT To Use It

Technology can be awesome, but it also can get in the way in relationships. All too often I see two people together in public, both looking at their phones or tablets or computers. Once I even saw a guy and girl walk into a coffee shop, the guy held the door for her. She walked in without acknowledging him, staring at her phone. And they exited the same way – how sad, right?

So don’t let that be you. When you’re together – do things together, don’t check your Facebook and don’t text other people. Instead, cherish the time you have together.

Conclusion

Don’t stop here though – think of your own special things to do! By doing this, you make them your own and they become even more special. Do you use technology in any different or significant way in your relationship? If your significant other doesn’t mind, feel free to share below!

Image Credits: Yellow love note via Shutterstock, Heart-shaped speedometer showing love measurement via Shutterstock